


Core and Heart

by ZEROENTA



Category: Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-25
Updated: 2020-01-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:14:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22396141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZEROENTA/pseuds/ZEROENTA
Summary: A romance/erotica anthology based on the Sword Art Online novel series. Set in an AU heavily based on the main novel canon of the franchise (at least what we know so far).Very potential change to explicit later.
Relationships: Argo/Kirigaya Kazuto | Kirito, Asada Shino | Sinon/Kirigaya Kazuto | Kirito, Kirigaya Kazuto | Kirito/Kizmel
Comments: 3
Kudos: 22





	1. Introduction

It was around 2025 that RCT Progress had implemented the floating castle Aincrad into their game Alfheim Online. It was a risky move on their part, since it would ignite memories of the SAO Incident among the population. I know I had some mixed feelings about it after the initial awe wore off.  
On one hand, this was the setting for the death game Sword Art Online, which took away four thousand of the ten thousand lives trapped inside that game for those two years. If you were unlucky enough to be pulled into Sword Art Online, you had at best a two thirds chance of survival. As one of the players imprisoned within the castle and whose life was put at risk, there was this nipping dread now seeing this castle again floating in the sky above the new world of Alfheim. Alike to how it affected my daily life in the real world; in the game world, Aincrad was always there floating in all its imposing glory.  
At the same time though, maybe that was why it was so magical. The two years I spent in Aincrad had ups, not just downs. Maybe there's a little Stockholm Syndrome in there too, but I finally connected to other people for the first time in years because of our shared experiences there.  
Actually, with how little I remember about my childhood it might have been the first time I connected with others (aside from Suguha, but even then there were some issues) on an emotional level.  
Aincrad, in a sense, is where I grew up. While it killed thousands, having it here in a completely safe capacity when we all thought it had been destroyed forever was a miracle. We shared pain, friendship, loss, and love in that floating castle of stone and steel.  
As Aincrad floats across the map and over the territories in Alfheim, you can see into the slices of the castle as you fly in Alfheim's skies. Whenever a see a slice of the floors, I remember all the feelings that floor brought. Even if I can't exactly recall what caused some of those memories. And as I soar, seeing through the layers, I remember just how constricted Sword Art Online was. There was hardly a sky. Behind the atmosphere, you could always see a faint black ceiling. But here in Alfheim, flying through the sky is part of the whole game's point.  
You could see into Aincrad, but you couldn't enter through the slivers save for floor one.  
In true Sword Art Online style, the developers at RCT Progress wanted the players to climb through the floors from the bottom. Definitely a sly way to add more content to your game with little effort and make it last. But I also wouldn't have it any other way.  
And so, a few years have passed. We're finally about to start exploring the yet-unexplored sections of Aincrad. It's crazy to think about how much has happened since Sword Art Online. I saved Asuna from being trapped in Alfheim, this very game. I also met Sinon, Shino Asada, and together we took down Death Gun in another Seed VRMMO called "Gun Gale Online." Though we got the ringleader Xaxa from SAO red guild "Black Coffin" and his brother Kyouji Shinkawa, the police couldn't track down Johnny Black. And that ultimately led to a whole government conspiracy and with that a whole other life or death game thanks to the discovery of fluctlights and the invention of the Soul Translator.  
Aincrad was added before the Death Gun debacle, but it wasn't until now that we get to actually finish the game that started it all.  
Still...  
While Aincrad is here in Alfheim Online, without some key people from the Sword Art Online days, finishing the game would feel kind of empty. Maybe it's for the best that it feels kinda empty. It might trigger some sort of deep-seated unknown PTSD in me or another of the survivors in our party. But being here without them reminds me I miss them. And so I'm hesitant to fight the floor 75 boss and move on to 76.  
It might be a little selfish of me, but I actually even made excuses to hold back our planned raids of the dungeon. Klein, in his usual manner, loudly pointed out that if I kept having to reschedule we wouldn't be able to fight the boss at all because someone might get to the dungeon's end first.  
It was a completely fair assessment so I couldn't say anything back to him, let alone anything snarky.  
Suguha had also added that I seemed less snarky and energetic ever since we reached floor 75.  
That's when this feeling started, so that sounds about right.   
But I can't keep waiting. We have to take the plunge. At the same time though, I don't want to leave those memories and people behind. I just can't bear to.


	2. A Visitor from the Past [Part 1]

"Link start."  
I spoke the words I had said hundreds of time before. I would also probably say them hundreds of more times to come.  
My vision went entirely white and a rainbow stream engulfed my vision as the data configured itself to fit my senses. A few seconds later, I found myself at the avatar select. Of course I picked my default Kirito avatar. It wasn't like I had any others I should use to tackle such a high floor. I know some of the others had multiple avatars, but we all used our defaults when taking on Aincrad.  
As an expansion, Aincrad is a bit unique. You can take it on as early as you start ALO. Aincrad is made of the exact same data as all of Sword Art Online. A couple small adjustments had to be made for Aincrad to fit into Alfheim Online, but other than that it's the exact same. I'm not one hundred percent sure that all NPCs are kept from the original. There are a few I've been looking for that I haven't found yet. But all of the NPCs in Aincrad that I've seen so far were in the original game. It makes sense, considering Klein and I were able to convert our Sword Art Online avatars into Alfheim Online avatars with only some glitches, like our items not carrying over. Though that was likely because Alfheim is a retooling of the Seed, it's not identical to SAO. Alfheim Online has new features and different items. There's also no conventional level system in this game, which runs counter to SAO. It's actually about your equipment and stats. The setting of ALO and those differences are why Aincrad and its data needed to be slightly retooled in the first place.  
I spawned in the log cabin, as usual. We wouldn't know if it would have been the case in Sword Art Online considering we only climbed a few floors during the beta test so basically nobody had the col to purchase a living space, but here in ALO you spawn in your primary living space.  
I felt the weight of my equipment set in as my synapses adjusted to the Virtual Reality before me. Color began to quickly fizzle in through the white until the interior of the log cabin was completely visible to me.  
"I see you're finally here," said Leafa. She was sitting on the sofa with Asuna, Lisbeth, and Silica. The three of them also greeted me.  
Before I could respond to them, a voice boomed from behind me.  
"You actually made it, Kirito, you punk! I was sure you would bail on us again!" It was Klein. I turned around to see the Salamander warrior step towards me and give me a light slap on the forehead.  
From the sofa Asuna murmured, "I just will not understand the physicality of male friendships."  
Lisbeth interjected, "You're one to talk, considering I've seen you hit Kirito and Klein multiple times."  
"Yeah, kinda merciless," Silica softly chimed in.  
"M-merciless? It was because those two are troublemakers!"  
"Well, I try," I responded.  
"Wait, do you mean you try to not be a nuisance or..." Leafa deadpanned.  
"Not like his intent changes anything," bookended Silica.  
"Anyway." Klein added, "Sure kept us waiting. About time you actually showed up. Now we can actually go fight the boss."  
"Honestly, I'm kinda surprised nobody else has beat The Skull Reaper in ALO yet. You would think a week would be enough time for the front line players of the most popular VRMMO in Japan." I put my hand to my chin. "Looks like they couldn't take advantage of that head start, haha."  
"Don't act all smug about procrastinating this battle!" Klein shouted.  
I chuckled, as did Silica half way across the room.  
That's right. I'm playing a game with my friends and that's all. It may be a reconstruction of Sword Art Online, but there's no need to sweat the small stuff. Be cool.  
This little banter was what I needed to reassure myself.  
It was then that I noticed that Sinon was missing. If Klein was trying to mock me for being late to the party—in more ways than one—then what about her.  
"Where's Sinon?"  
"Oh, she's out buying consumables I think."  
"Huh—"  
"She said she'll meet us at the dungeon for the strategy briefing."  
Oh, I though this was the strategy briefing. So I guess we're going to split up for a bit and reconverge in front of the dungeon.  
Lisbeth spoke up as if reading my mind, "We're meeting up in front of the dungeon in thirty minutes. I think I'm about to take off and give my weapons a couple buffs. Anyone want me to buff theirs while I'm at it?"  
"Blacksmithing work for free? Must be a tough boss if you're offering that to us," Leafa commented.  
"Of course. The Skull Reaper is a quarter boss. If you remember Gleameyes, this one's a bit like that one."  
"Wha—N-no way!"  
"Well, I, for one, am taking up that offer!" Klein shouted as he opened the trade menu.  
Everyone else joined in and before I knew it, Lisbeth was carrying all of our weapons.  
"I'll give them back at the meeting! Don't forget to stock up on healing items. Teleport items won't work once the fight starts."  
Nearly forgot about that. How's my inventory looking?  
I opened my inventory to check on my healing items and there were absolutely none. Well, Asuna healed us usually so that makes sense, but she won't be able to heal all of us for the whole fight. She'll also need to help in deflecting the attacks of the Skull Reaper, so she really will have hardly any time to cast spells.  
I gotta have some healing items in my storage.  
To my surprise, only a couple healing items were left. They weren't nearly enough to cover me in a rematch against that colossal, skeletal centipede. I would have to go out and stock up.  
I spoke up, "Hey, I'm also going to be heading out. Looks like my items aren't gonna cut it for this battle. Not for a quarter boss. I'll see you all when we meet up again."  
"Okay, see you later!"  
"Try not to get mugged without those precious swords of yours."  
I headed out of the cabin and made my way to the marketplace on the 75th floor. The cool breeze brushed my face as I made turns in the large bazaar.  
Now, which shop is it?  
I made use of my enhanced vision stats as I scanned the stalls on both sides of me. You really wouldn't expect the colorful canopies and flashy signboards on a floor like this. The rest of the floor's major city is mostly clean and proper, with a symmetrical beauty to its construction. A hustling, bustling bazaar such as this one is real surprise.  
As I slowly made my way through the streets, looking for a certain stall I had once bought healing consumables from, something caught my eye.  
A blue-haired cat-eared girl with catlike eyes to match. As my eyes locked into her, her cursor information appeared above her in my vision. No doubt, it was Sinon!  
She doesn't see me... Hmm... Maybe there's a fun way I can approach this, hehehe...  
So I walked up to her casually, making careful to stay in her blind spot, and covered her eyes from behind her.  
"Guess who!"  
"Kirito?" Her reply sounded more like an exclamation of shock than an actual answer, but I took it anyways!  
"Ding ding ding!" I took my hands off her eyes.  
Sinon turned to me and smiled. "I just got done buying the items I needed to. I see you also need to stock up."  
"You know me too well for being the latest one to our group."  
"Well, that's what happens when people hang out as much as we have. What has it been, two years? I know more about you than you probably know about yourself. And that being said..."  
A moment of awkward silence passed.  
"Kirito, if something's bothering you, you can always talk to me about it."  
"Ah, so you noticed.." I sheepishly scratched the back of my head. It was a move meant to look casual but it always just ended up making me look awkward so it didn't help at all. Still, it was a habit.  
"Well, I always have eye on you."  
"Huh?"  
W-what exactly does that mean?  
Sinon suddenly registered that what had come out of her mouth sounded a bit strange and made a quick attempt to explain it away.  
"W-well, I've just taken interest in you is all."  
I responded, "Interest?"  
She once again seemed to realize that what she had said sounded a bit different that what she had intended. This time, she began to sweat a little and her cheeks burned a rosy pink.  
Sinon quavered, "W-well you're one of the strongest players in both GGO and ALO. Who wouldn't be interested? That's all I'm shaying—saying." As she corrected her tongue slip, I opened trade options with the NPC she had been buying from.  
Ah, that's a little disappointing, I thought.  
As it turned out, this NPC had just what I needed. I stocked up on tons of HP and Magic restoration items.  
I'll just go in with all of these and then store whatever I don't use back in storage after we climb the stairs to floor 76.  
Sinon spoke up, "So what exactly was it that made you procrastinate this dungeon raid?"  
I closed negotiations with the NPC and began making my way to the dungeon with Sinon by my side.  
"Oh, well uhh... I'm not really sure if it matters that much. If I'm the only one who feels this way then it's bound to not be too big a deal."  
Sinon and I passed the threshold of the town and into the wild. It was a straight shot along the main road, more or less. We weren't going to run into any monsters on our short journey.  
"It does matter. If it's bothering you then the very least you could do is vent. And as I said, I'm always here to listen to your problems."  
Sinon was pushing me to just say it out loud. It didn't seem like it was worth putting up any more resistance, so I explained it.  
"Well, we're finally getting to new areas we've never seen before. Today. It's been years since the SAO Incident and this feels kind of cathartic. We're finally getting closure, but..."  
Sinon looked at me at a side glance, hanging on the words coming out of my mouth.  
I finished, "Not everyone is here for this. There's still people who deserve this kind of closure that aren't here in this game, finally experiencing the end of Sword Art Online. And if I'm going to be a little selfishly honest, it feels empty for me without them. They're these people I never got back in touch with. I know I was lucky enough to get back in touch with many of the people in our party, but I can't shake this little emptiness."  
Just a couple seconds passed in silence.  
"Oh... I... I can't really help you there." Sinon articulated.  
The dungeon entrance was coming into view along the path framed by large evergreens. Sinon seemed to focus on the destination as she thought of what to say next.  
"But just know that you have new friends and companions that are helping you finish it alongside you. It wasn't going to be perfect closure n the first place. And this is technically a whole different game—ALO. So maybe try shifting your perspective. The alternative is that you wouldn't be hanging out with me or your sister now!"  
Sinon turned her head to look me in the eye and a small smile had spread on her face.  
"Yeah..."  
"Ah, hey! Glad to see you two make it. It's time!" Lisbeth waved to us cheerily as we assimilated into the party.  
"Alrighty. Strategy time. What have we got?" I asked.  
"We're just going to go with our usual formation," explained Silica.  
"Really? I guess that makes sense, but..." Sinon responded unenthused.  
"That's hardly a strategy meeting at all!" I interrupted.  
Leafa reclined against a make-belief wall. "Well it is our best formation. That's the reason why it's the usual in the first place. We totally grind any and all enemies to powder. Especially in enclosed spaces."  
That's true. And this dungeon has many tunnels and corridors...  
"That's just the way it is this time. Sorry if it's anti-climactic." Asuna looked slightly apologetic.  
"I guess that's the way the cookie crumbles."  
God, I could go for a cookie right now.  
"Are we ready to go in?" I asked. It was a formality to ask if everyone is prepared before entering a dungeon, but this time the question came from my own nervousness.  
The final stretch of Aincrad until unexplored areas...  
"C'mon, we'll be fine! We're all prepared and everything. And you're here, Kirito. You make everything so much easier, you overpowered dumbass," Klein assured.  
Sinon nodded. "I'll always be ready if you're here."  
And so we entered the dungeon.  
Behind the giant, ancient door was a sprawling cave network. It looked easy to get lost in and it would be nearly impossible to reach the boss' lair without directions. How did we even clear the first part of this dungeon back in SAO?  
Our party advanced deeper and deeper into the cave system. Klein, Leafa, and I stood at the front while Lisbeth would occasionally weave through us and retreat to deal some major damage. Asuna, Silica, and Sinon stayed at the back since their functions worked at a range.  
As Leafa said, we were grinding the enemies to dust. But the pathways were so confusing that we eventually lost track of where we were. From then on, it was us in the moment, in that space. All we had to worry about was what was behind every corner.  
Each turn we made in the dungeon made us more and more anxious. Even though we were high level, there was no telling what could be beyond the corners. Eventually, the shadows the beyond each corner felt like they started moving. It became so stressful that it felt like a dream.  
More corners passed. Until eventually...  
In one particular corridor, far into the dungeon, a cloaked figure leapt out from behind the corner and landed square in our line of sight.  
"That's—" The words couldn't help leaking out of my mouth.  
The figure wore a cloak. But beneath the shadow and inside the hood I could see familiar shoulder-length golden hair, eyes like a cat's, and—of course—whisker face paint, three on each cheek.  
It was her without a shadow of a doubt. A face I thought I might never see again was here in front of me. A face that I knew all too well and relied upon countless times in the original Sword Art Online was in my sight years later in the very same floating castle Aincrad. It may have been in a different game, but it really was her.  
"Argo..."  
She turned her face to me as her eyes widened just for a second. She regained composure almost immediately.  
"It's about time I ran into you in here, Kii-boy!" Argo smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading the first chapter of my fanfic "Core and Heart." If you liked it, please check out my other fics!


End file.
